Nawānagar, Sir Ranjitsinhji Vibhaji, Maharaja Jam Sahib of

▪ Indian athlete and ruler

also called (until 1907)  Kumar Shri (“Honourable Prince”) Ranjitsinhji Vibhaji 

born Sept. 10, 1872, Sarodar, India

died April 2, 1933, Jāmnagar

      one of the world's greatest cricket players and, later, a ruler of his native state in India.

      After attending Trinity College, Cambridge (1890–93), he played for the Sussex cricket team in first-class county competition (1895–97, 1899–1904, 1908, 1912) and served as team captain (1899–1903). An unorthodox but graceful batsman, he scored the high total of 3,000 runs in 1899 and again in 1900. In 15 England-versus-Australia test matches, he scored 985 runs.

      As maharaja of Nawānagar from March 1907, he was a progressive ruler and statesman and set an example by the simplicity of his personal life. He modernized his capital of Jāmnagar, developed the seaport of Nawānagar, and built roads, railways, and irrigation facilities. During World War I he was a British army staff officer in France, attaining the rank of colonel. In 1920 he represented the Indian states at the League of Nations Assembly, Geneva, and in 1932 he became chancellor of the Indian Chamber of Princes. He was knighted in 1917, 1919, and 1923.

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